Road Trip!

The boys and I (Deanna, that is) took a quick trip to Little Rock this last weekend. My mom was visiting my sister and brother-in-law so we thought it'd be a good idea to bring the grandbabies to her for some snuggles. It was a jam-packed weekend with a trip to the Children's Discovery Museum, Krista's first baby shower, church and a trip to the park. Garrett loved playing some real-life Angry Birds and teaching Grandma how to play the game on her new Kindle. Nolan loved being held a little more than usual and being rocked extra long at bedtime. Thanks for having all us crazies, Nate and Krista!! We'll miss you guys when you're back in the land of Lincoln, but we're excited to meet Baby Boston in a couple months. :)

ANGRY BIRDS!!

 In his own little Garrett-sized chair at the Children's Discovery Museum.

Up in the lighthouse! Garrett liked pushing the button to make the barge sound.

Checking out more of the little kids area.

Garrett was telling this guy "Eat your food!"

Building some ramps for the marbles. They had a really cool "tinkering" area.

Waiting for the drum ballet to begin.

 And here they are!

 

Nolan didn't know what to think of all those drums!

 Making shadow puppets with Grandma!

Building a bigger tunnel!

Look! We're on camera!!

Hooray for Baby Boston!!

Krista's church friends were so sweet and inviting (even though Mom and I were baby shower crashers!)

Showing Grandma how to work her new Kindle. He showed her youtube and Angry Birds and they watched a little bit of Bob the Builder together.

I had Nolan in the front carrier but he got chilly so I threw on Krista's jacket. As funny as it looks, it kept us both warm! (And those are Nolan's arms making the bumps on the front...just FYI.)

He did it! Garrett was a lot braver with the rock climber this time around.

Teeter-tottering with Grandma.

And riding on the "boat" with Nate and Grandma! He loves rocking the boat!

Our boys

They already have fun together, as you can see in this video. :)

Six months old!!

Mr. Nolan is six months old today. I can't believe he's been with us for half of a year now! He's just getting over an epic battle with a virus that wreaked havoc on his face and hands. Poor little guy is still wearing his sock mittens so that he doesn't chew on his sores and spread the virus. But he's still a sweet little man who loves to roll all over the floor and watch his big brother play. We've been slowly introducing solid foods to him and so far his favorites are bananas, oatmeal and squash. He must like yellow. :) The next six months are going to bring so many changes and milestones and we're excited and blessed to watch him grow each day.

This is his surprised face...LOVE it!

Happy Valentines Day!

Couldn't resist dressing the boys in similar outfits today...it won't be too long before at least one of them is too "cool" to let me do that. :) I hope that you feel loved today, especially by the One who loves you more than you know.

My first attempt to get them to smile at the camera at the same time. Ha. 

It may *look* like Garrett is trying to hold Nolan's hand but he's really trying to shoo him away from the book because he says Nolan can't touch it. He's very particular about the baby touching his things these days.

Awww...brotherly love.

And then you see how it really is around here most of the time. Boys, boys, boys...

PS: Sorry for all the similar photos...I just couldn't decide which ones I liked the best! :)

Happy 3rd Birthday, Garrett!!!

Our "little" man is no longer a toddler. He's officially transitioned into being a preschooler. (No, this does NOT mean that he's potty-trained...we're attacking that milestone over Spring Break...I'll keep you all posted.) He is so much fun to talk to and listen to and play with. His imagination makes me giggle, even when it's helping him procrastinate at bedtime. He's quick to give hugs and kisses and those same things, when they come from Mommy or Daddy, can heal any wound. When we say our prayers together before bed, he always insists we say thank you for "Baby Jesus" and when you ask what else he wants to pray for, his response is always the same. "Baby Jesus." Apparently he listened really well at Christmas this year! We are beyond blessed to have him in our lives and even though his energy can be exhausting, it's also an inspiration. We love you, Garrett Michael!!

 Garrett posing by his Curious George birthday cake.

I was so glad to let someone else (aka Walmart Bakery) do the birthday cake. I have my own gifts and talents...cake baking/decorating is NOT one of them.

The big three year old is sporting his Curious George shirt and a tattoo with the same cute little monkey on his right cheek.

Here's Garrett and just a few of his friends that came to help us celebrate. We had a FULL house that day!

 Not sure what Garrett's doing here but you can see the first game we played in the background.

Kinda lame but they played the Curious George "Stick the Butterfly on the Poster" game. :) It was cool enough for 2 and 3 year-olds at least!

Getting ready for the Happy Birthday song

Make a wish, Garrett!

One wish came true...here's the birthday boy enjoying some cake and ice cream.

And then we set them loose outside. First they had a banana hunt (Russ and Uncle Nate hid a couple dozen cardstock paper bananas in the backyard for the kiddos to find. That held their attention for about...5 minutes.) Then they ran and chased and pushed siblings off of the climber. :) It was so much fun and we appreciated all our friends who came out to celebrate our special boy's big day.

Random

Here are a few random pictures taken a week or two ago. I love seeing my boys together. Garrett talks to Nolan all the time and loves to "show him" things. I often hear "I show you, Moey, I show you" coming from their direction. And Nolan loves to watch his big brother Garrett doing anything at all. Most of the time it's with a huge grin on his face too. I'm excited to see how they grow and play together in the years to come. Maybe a little scared too, since I already know how mischievous big brother can be all by himself. ;)

This is a good example of how Nolan watches Garrett 24/7.

Two handsome smiles. LOVE them!

These last two pictures are of Garrett playing with Mommy's phone. The little stinker knows how to turn it on, unlock it, find Angry Birds (or Netflix or Words with Friends or any other app) and play. He can turn the volume up and down. He even knows how to call speed dial contacts. I'm doomed when Nolan gets enough dexterity to do the same. Ha!